New Years Eve Ladies Night Out

The Ladies of the Flinders Sewing Circle on one of their regular Pub Crawls.  You know who you are!

Happy New Years,
Marjorie

The Geography Lesson

As a little girl in Upstate New York, I often dreamed of travelling to faraway places. These dreams were fueled by stories of my family’s travel adventures. One ancestor was a missionary in 19th century Turkey, where he and his wife ran an orphanage for Armenian girls. Another, my grandfather, was a scientist who made research expeditions the length and breadth of Africa studying the Fruit fly. Then there was my father, who spent most of World War II in Delhi India, as a quartermaster in the Army, supplying the Burma trail.

 I loved nothing better than going up to the attic of our house, and digging through old trunks full of ancient photographs and mementos from these family adventures. My father had also given me his childhood collections of stamps and postcards. The bold colors and designs of the stamps from colonial Africa especially intrigued me. On rainy days, I used to entertain the neighborhood kids with shows of postcard images projected on the attic walls from my father’s old magic lantern. At school, during show and tell, I often demonstrated how to drape an Indian sari and a turban.

So when I saw the details of an online course in Travel Geography from a local community college, I was excited at the opportunity to learn more about these parts of the world, and to retrace the steps of my ancestors.

Next Stop - Africa and Asia,
Marjorie

Bunnies, Bunnies and More Bunnies!

It's Easter, and everywhere you look there are Bunnies and Rabbits gathering for the celebration.

All this reminds me of our time living in the countryside of Belgium.  A favorite pastime was watching the local Belgian hares happily dancing and grazing on the lawn of our home.  This was not a good sight to our landlord, but for us these persistent visitors provided many happy hours of viewing.

Sending Love and Easter Bouquets to Bunnies, (both human and animal), everywhere.

Marjorie

Joy to the World

Peace and Happiness to all!

Marjorie

Out of the Fog...Into the Mist

From Carmel on California's Monterey Peninsula, our little convoy headed out for Central Oregon.  Accompanied by our trusty GPS, and walkie-talkies, we were three vehicles in all. Out front in the lead Uhaul truck was "Grey Wolf"; followed by "Hawkeye" in the second truck; and in the last car - moi aka "Pocahantas".  We travelled North on Route 101, through winding California redwood forests, beside the rocky Oregon coast, and followed the Umpqua river to our new encampment.

Should you find yourself some evening at the Mission Ranch in Carmel, CA, ask the pianist to "Play Misty" for Me.

Marjorie

On the Trail Again!

Northward Ho the Wagons,
Soon we'll packing up all our earthly goods, and heading across the pass to Oregon.  There, we'll be de-camping in the Salem/Portland area, site of our new home grounds. The stories and adventures continue in the New Year.
May your path be safe and happy this Holiday Season,
Marjorie

Aussie Alternative to Black Friday

If you're down on the Mornington Peninsula (Australia) this weekend, you won't want to miss this! Gorgeous Aussie artists Leisa Wharington, glass-blower and Flick Pope, jewelry-maker, and a host of other vendors open up their Studio in the bush for a yearly pop-up shopping event.  Indie creativity abounds!  ( http://www.facebook.com/events/386081194804218/),
Hop on over, and tell the gals I sent you. You'll see more than kangaroos!
Marjorie